What is in This Collection?

This collection is an electronic index of marriages for the years 1785 to 1940 taken from the following sources:

Indexed church records

Civil registrations

The Internet indexing project sponsored by the LDS Church

Church records and civil registration were official sources and are some of the most reliable sources of family history information.

This index is not complete for any particular place, region or time period. This collection may include information previously published in the International Genealogical Index or Vital Records Index collections.

What Can These Records Tell Me?

Marriage entries usually contain some or all of the following:

Date and place of marriage

Name and age of groom

Groom's race and marital status

Birthplace and birthdate of groom

Names of groom's parents

Name and age of bride

Bride's race and marital status

Birthplace of and birthdate of bride

Names of bride's parents

Family History Library Microfilm and item numbers for the source materials

Search the Index

Fill in the search boxes on the Collection Page with the information you have

Click Search to show possible matches

How Do I Analyze the Results?

Compare each result from your search with what you know to determine if there is a match. This may require viewing multiple records or images. Keep track of your research in a research log.

What Do I Do Next?

Print or download a copy of the record, or extract the genealogical information needed.

I Found the Person I was Looking for, What Now?

Use the marriage date and place as the basis for compiling a new family group or for verifying existing information

Use the birth date or age along with the place of birth of each partner to find a couple's birth records and parents' names

Use the birth date or age along with the place of birth to find the family in census records

Use the residence and names of the parents to locate church and land records

Use the parent’s birth places to find former residences and to establish a migration pattern for the family

Use the marriage number to identify previous marriages

The name of the officiator is a clue to their religion or area of residence in the county. However, ministers may have reported marriages performed in other counties

Compile the marriage entries for every person who has the same surname as the bride or groom; this is especially helpful in rural areas or if the surname is unusual

Continue to search the marriage records to identify children, siblings, parents, and other relatives of the bride and groom who may have married in the same county or nearby. This can help you identify other generations of your family or even the second marriage of a parent. Repeat this process for each new generation you identify

I Can't Find the Person I'm Looking for, What Now?

Look for variant spellings of the names. You should also look for nicknames and abbreviated names

Look for another index. Local genealogical and historical societies often have indexes to local records

Search the indexes and records of nearby counties

Be aware that, as with any index, transcription errors may occur

Try alternative search methods such as only filling in the surname search box (or the given name search box) on the landing page leaving the other box empty and then click on search. This should return a list of everyone with that particular name. You could then browse the list for individuals that may be your ancestor

Known Issues with This Collection

For a full list of all known issues associated with this collection see the attached Wiki article. If you encounter additional problems, please email them to support@familysearch.org. Please include the full path to the link and a description of the problem in your e-mail. Your assistance will help ensure that future reworks will be considered.

Citing This Collection

Citations help you keep track of places you have searched and sources you have found. Identifying your sources helps others find the records you used.

How Can I Contribute to the FamilySearch Wiki?

We welcome user additions to FamilySearch Historical Records wiki articles. We are looking for additional information that will help readers understand the topic and better use the available records. We also need translations for collection titles and images in articles about records written in languages other than English. For specific needs, please visit WikiProject FamilySearch Records.

Please follow these guidelines as you make changes. Thank you for any contributions you may provide.